


Promise

by sapphire_child



Category: Lost
Genre: Angst, Canonical Character Death, Episode: s03e22-23 Through the Looking Glass, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2007-09-17
Updated: 2007-09-17
Packaged: 2019-01-17 14:24:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12367641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sapphire_child/pseuds/sapphire_child
Summary: Claire Littleton had never broken a promise before in her life.





	Promise

Claire Littleton had never broken a promise before in her life.

From a young age, her mother had told her never to make anyone a promise that she knew she couldn’t – or wouldn’t – keep. As such, she had always made her promises lightly and she tried to keep them as vague as possible so as not to incriminate herself. Just in case.

“I’ll maybe clean my room on Sunday mum.”

“I’ll try to get there as soon as I can – but I might be a little late.”

“I don’t know if I can but I’ll try my best.”

Despite – or maybe because of – how vague her own promises were, Claire grew to expect more out of everyone else’s. She expected everyone else to keep their word wholeheartedly, even if she suspected that they had been lying to her.

“You said you were going to be here at six o’clock!”

“I thought you weren’t going to buy those shoes?”

“But you said we should do this!”

The worst broken promise had been that of Thomas – the man who had said he wanted to try having a family with her only to up and run as soon as the responsibility became too much. His betrayal hurt her more than words could say. Claire’s resolve stiffened – never again would she promise anyone anything unless she was certain she could keep it. She never wanted to hurt somebody the way that Thomas had hurt her.

Charlie had made dozens of promises to her over the three months that she’d known him and – on the whole – he had kept them. Some circumstances beyond his control had definitely interfered with them but Claire knew that in his heart, Charlie had always intended to keep them.

“I won’t leave you Claire. I promise.”

When Claire had found out about Desmond’s prophecies, she made her own promise to him – the first proper promise she had ever made.

“I’m not giving up on you either Charlie. We’ll get through this together.”

Claire Littleton had never broken a promise before in her life and she certainly wasn’t about to start now. She had truly meant what she said to him that day – meant it with all of her heart. Which is why when she discovered that despite all he had said to her, that Charlie had still gone willingly to his death and had finally fulfilled Desmond’s visions – she completely broke down.

Through her ignorance, through her own foolish trust that Charlie would take the vow she had made to heart as much as she had, she had inadvertently broken her first real promise, the one promise that had truly mattered to her.

Claire Littleton would never make a promise to anyone ever again after that day. She knew well enough from the one experience that when she broke her word to somebody she loved – it hurt her so much that it was enough to break her.


End file.
